A florescent green slime/algae was observed and reported by one of our members, Susan Marzolf, and was forwarded on to Idaho DEQ & Panhandle Health.
Todd Higgins, from DEQ responded:
“Thank you for letting us know about the green scum you saw in Spirit Lake. Judging from the pictures it looks like filamentous green algae. Seems like more of this has been popping up in our lakes over the last few summers. While kind of gross, it is a competitor of the harmful algae, but it is not dangerous. There are multiple species of green alga, and they can be big and blobby, along with being really fine and stringy. The harmful cyanobacteria will usually look like a greasy iridescent green paint spill in the water with no blobs or form. I did attach a picture (see below) of a typical Spirit Bloom, if the water looks like this then we need to check on it.”
Be vigilant, if you see something, say something!
Report a potential harmful algal bloom:
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